PROGRESS FOR WOMEN COMES WITH BEING IN THE ROOM
is everything in life, and one thing leads to another. How different would my life have been had I been the first born in my family, 11 years earlier, without the benefit of a decade of cultural change?
The world reinvented itself after the Great Depression and World War II, as it has throughout history after disasters, and the 1950s and 1960s were decades of enormous growth and innovation. Expanded roles for women during the war led to the feminist movement and much higher expectations for women of my generation. Though I knew several women physicians, lawyers and business leaders while growing up, they were few and far between. They were true trailblazers. Building on their achievements, women of my generation were often “the only woman in the room” and still are at times, but we have been in the room and have had a seat at the table. Every time that happens, progress for women moves forward both in the United States and around the world.
By the time I started practicing law in the 1980s, 30 percent of law school students were women, and all-women law firms were forming. Networking groups taught women how to speak up about their careers and accomplishments. Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman on the U.S. Supreme Court in 1981, the number of women judges and lawyers across the country grew, and in San Diego, a woman lawyer chaired a department in our largest and oldest law firm.
For me, a law degree meant confidence, being taken seriously, and leadership opportunities. Good luck and great timing worked in my favor, and one thing led to another as I established myself as a committed and contributing member of several regional nonprofit boards.
Having a seat at the table was an opporTiming tunity to learn, to influence and be influenced, and to be part of the process. It was a chance to share my own perspective and, more importantly, to grow and gain new perspective.
Service on nonprofit boards provided new skills, diversified friendships, and gave me a much broader understanding of our community, all of which furthered my career. As a result, my view of the world expanded far beyond my ZIP code.
Looking back, it’s odd to think that, when I was growing up, women couldn’t have lunch at The Grant Grill or be members of Rotary. It’s even more odd to realize that such policies weren’t questioned because women weren’t at the table to ask, influence or suggest. The Grant Grill abandoned its exclusion policy a few years after several women staged a “lunch-in” in 1969 to affirm their “rights as a person,” and Rotary admitted women as a result of a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1987. I am proud to be a member of San Diego Rotary and serve on its foundation board.
It has been said that, as we journey through life, we become the culmination of our experiences and the people we have known. As the years go by, it has been a great joy to “connect those dots” in unanticipated ways to make a positive difference. As a member of the Community Advisory Board of The San Diego Union-Tribune, I have added my experience to that of an exceptionally perceptive, positive group of people who truly care about San Diego as an evolving community and diverse culture.
We have come a long way, but we have a long way to go, and the journey continues. If your goal is to continue to learn and improve while advancing our community, pursue board service in an area of interest and find a seat. Who knows where that will lead you.